1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to methods and apparatuses for aligning and installing fasteners. In particular, the present invention relates to marking blank removable and interchangeable panels for drilling fastener holes.
2. Description of Related Art
Current methods for marking blank removeable and interchangeable panels include the use of hole finders, stud bolts, and/or custom jig tools. In the hole-finder and stud-bolt methods, hole locations are transferred to a parallel surface offset from the substructure. The main problem with these methods is that they are not sufficiently precise in replicating hole locations, i.e., they are not accurate within close tolerances and become increasingly more difficult to use as the curvature of the panel becomes more complex. Although custom jig tools provide a more accurate transfer of the hole locations to the blank panel, the monetary cost and process time make the use of custom jig tools prohibitive.
Thus, many shortcomings remain in the area of aligning and marking blank removable and interchangeable panels for the installation of fasteners.